Killer Instinct
by the random monkey
Summary: It's back, and this time, it's personal! In the countryside outside of Treno, a silver-haired man and several Alexandrian guards meet to test a new prototype...


 ____________________________________________________________________________  
    |Title: Killer Instinct |  
    |Author: See Notes |  
    |Date: 8-19-03 / 2-23-04 |  
    |Author's notes: This is a story started by MahoMage, one of my good friends.|  
    |She apparently got sick of it, and since I couldn't stand to see it sit here|   
    |lonely and unfinished, I asked her if I could finish it. *bangs gavel* |  
    |Let the record show that she agreed! You can ask her, her e-mail is |  
    |magefeathers@yahoo.com. These first four chapters are hers; I'm finishing it|  
    |up. And... Done a few edits. Well, enjoy!___________________________________| 

  
Disclaimer: I do not own FF9 or any recognizable characters, places, titles or logos. All of the latter are owned by SquareSoft. *laughs* Square Software? What kind of stupid name is that? Were they high or something when they came up with that? *laughter fades as a Japanese midget riding a giant tarantuala attacks* Okay! I'm sorry! I won't diss your name again! *sobs* Please! I have a lizard and two siblings! SPARE THE PIXIE!!!!  
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Author's Note: Hello! I've been redoing ALL of my stories. This was the first I decided to revamp and redo. This version makes so much more sense than the latter.  
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"Yeah, I lied. I lie alot. That's what makes me cool."~Zorak, "The Brak Show"   
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"Test run number....12-42. Prototype number 10. Location: Outskirts of Treno. Release the monster," an Alexandrian soldier commanded. Kuja watched, idly petting the flank of his loyal dragon. His jade green eyes glittered, expectant of the upcoming battle.  
  
Another soldier opened the cage of a grand dragon, releasing the beast within. The creature snarled malicously, showing rows and rows of razor sharp teeth. The silver haired man laughed.  
  
"Perhaps little number 10 will do better than his predecessors." Kuja said. He waved his hand, and a third soldier came out, rolling a barrel with the Alexandrian symbol on it. Kuja nodded to the armor clad female, and she cracked the seal of the wooden cylinder. The black mage within tumbled out, lifeless.   
  
Kuja sighed. "This is getting ridiculous. The black mages are getting more and more pathetic as we go." The black mage was wearing an unusual outfit, a sky blue overcoat, white and turquoise pinstripe pants, and red gloves. Its hat flopped over on top in a clumsy way.   
  
Kuja walked over to the mage and gave it a small nudge with his foot. Nothing.  
  
"Should I wake it up?" the soldier asked.  
  
"I suppose." Kuja mused. "Maybe it can at least run fast."  
  
The soldier complied and a moment later, the mage was on its feet, yellow eyes curious and aware. Kuja examined it for a moment. "Well, it's doing better than 2 and 7 so far." He cleared his throat, calling the mage to attention. "Kill that dragon."  
  
The black mage scuttled off, stumbling over his own feet and holding onto his floppy hat, to find the beast that Kuja had ordered him to slaughter. The soldiers laughed. One piped up. "It's a shame to have such a cute little mage go to waste."  
  
"Yeah, did you see him? He was adorable!"  
  
Kuja laughed along with the female gaurds. "This should turn out to be an amusing show."  
  
They watched as number 10 continued over the barren field, looking for the object of his hunt. It found him first.  
  
The winged red reptile shrieked a fierce warning as it flew down from the sky, brandishing teeth and claws almost as impressive as Bahamut himself. It crouched down as it landed, then stood on its haunches to its full height. Its scaled wings spread out, fannning the air to keep balance.   
  
Kuja and the Alexandrian gaurds, who were watching only 10 yards away, kept a close eye on the oncoming battle. Kuja frowned. "What is taking that over grown lizard so long?"  
  
"I don't know sir. They seem to be having a stare down. An intimidation match of some sort."  
  
Kuja perked up. "Perhaps that little runt is more powerful than we expected."  
  
The soldier guffawed. "No way can that little guy beat a thoroughbred red dragon."  
  
"Are you doubting my work?"  
  
She realized she may have offended Kuja. "No sir, I'm just saying that...."  
  
"Hush."  
  
The dragon continued a low, even growling in his throat, trying to scare off the mage. It would have preferred to eat something that was running or scared; fear always added an extra bit of excitement to a hunt. The dragon let out another earth shattering roar.   
  
Little did the beast know, its opponent knew no fear, just raw obedience. A spark of knowledge lit in the small mage's mind - the knowledge of black magic, of pure and untainted destruction. He began murmuring an incantation as electricity began to surge through his body. Through? No, that couldn't be right. Was it?  
  
The silver haired man watched with intrigue. "This is usually the part that they fail. They are destroyed by an overload of magic. This one is much too frail to command that power....perhaps not.' Kuja mused to himself. All the other prototypes had failed this test, being savagely killed by the monster, unable to defend themselves because of defecient magic or inability to take orders.  
  
Number 10 finished conjuring. He swung his arm foward, commanding the spell. A pillar of pure electrical power surged through the reptilian beast, causing it to screech and shriek as the heat of the Thundara spell blew skywards, stripping the dragon of skin, flesh and organs, leaving only a pile of half charred bones.   
  
The black mage was proud of himself. Could he be proud of himself? He shook his head and thought for a moment. Why not?  
  
His muddled and simple thoughts were interupted by the sound of clapping. The black mage looked up to see Kuja walking toward him, leaving the soldiers and silver dragon behind. "Well done, well done. Very impressive. Surprised us all."  
  
The black mage looked to Kuja. "Th-thank you sir."  
  
Kuja's eyes shot wide open, and the mage was suddenly filled with worry. Had he done something wrong? He was just showing gratitude for a compliment and nothing more.   
  
"What did you say my puppet?" asked Kuja softly.  
  
"I s-said th-thank you." his voice was very shaky and slightly raspy, as if he weren't supposed to have it.  
  
Kuja looked to the soldiers. "Prototype number 10 a success physically, programming still needs to be improved upon."  
  
The black mage watched, waiting for another order. He decided to not speak again unless he was asked to.   
  
Kuja walked around the mage, examining him. "You know what you were made for?"  
  
The mage forced himself not to answer, thinking it would upset the man.  
  
"Hm, wise choice puppet. Know this, you were created for two purposes. One; to serve your master. Two; to serve as a weapon."  
  
The mage remained motionless as this new information was drilled into his mind. To serve, to kill. To serve, to kill. To serve, to kill. To serve, to kill....  
  
"What is your purpose?"  
  
The mage remained silent.  
  
"Come, come, don't act dumb. I know you can use your voice, even if you're not supposed to be able to."  
  
"To s-serve...."  
  
"Yes, and...?"  
  
"To k-kill."  
  
Kuja smiled and patted the mage on the head. "It seems this prototype will work just fine for your queen's purposes."  
  
"Should we inform the workers on standby in Dali?"  
  
Kuja nodded. "Yes. Unfortunatley, we'll have to get rid of this little runt."  
  
The soldiers exchanged confused glances. "What? Why?"  
  
"You never use a prototype as you would use the finished product." Kuja explained loftily, brushing a stray hair behind his ear.  
  
"Do you want us to take care of him, sir?"  
  
"No, I'll take care of IT." Kuja said haughtily. "You just convey the message to the workers in Dali."  
  
"Yes sir. What should we do with the other prototypes?"  
  
Kuja thought for a moment "Do what you will."  
  
The soldiers gave a salute and then went off.  
  
"Come here, little number 10." Kuja said slyly. "I have something I'd like to show you."  
  
The black mage looked up at the peculiar silver haired man before him. As Kuja began to walk westward, the small mage toddled after, nearly running to match Kuja's quick stride. They finally stopped at the mouth of a cave.   
  
Kuja looked down to the black mage next to him and smiled. Number 10 returned the smile, although it went unseen.   
  
"Okay, head inside," Kuja instructed. The mage obeyed, walking in and looking back to him, still awaiting orders. Kuja followed him in and walked past, stopping at the edge of a small cliff.   
  
"Come here, have a look at this."  
  
The small mage obeyed and looked over the edge of the stony ridge. There was nothing below except a bubbling lake of.quicksand. Kuja stood over him. "Nice, isn't it?"  
  
The black mage didn't know what to say, and remembering his master's earlier reaction, decided not to answer.  
  
"Any last words?"  
  
Number 10 turned around to look at Kuja and express his inquiry, but it was too late. He felt a forceful shove and fell, slamming his head against the solid stone floor below. He heard Kuja's mocking laughter above as his eyes went out of focus, the pain now beginning to register in his mind. Then, everything went black.   
  
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Author's Note: Whoot, first chapter is complet-ed! Fear it! As you can see, this is way different than before. I'm trying to cut back on using fan fic characters as much as possible, so this is probably going to be fan fic character free! You don't see many of those nowadays, do ya?   
  



End file.
